Kankakee Times

Village of Ashkum Board of Trustees met Oct. 3.

Here are the minutes provided by the board:

The Ashkum Village Board met @ the village hall. Present were Paul Heideman, Donna Schmitz, Ed Tholen, Shannon Meier, Angie Gray, Ellen Mikeworth, and April Lyons. Treasurer Krystal Alberts was also in attendance. Trustee Jeremy Beherns was not present.

President Heideman called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.

Clerk Donna Schmitz read the minutes of the August 16, 2022 meeting. Shannon Meier moved to approve the minutes as read, seconded by Angie Gray and the motion passed. Clerk Schmitz read the minutes of the September 20, 2022 Special Board meeting. April Lyons moved to approve the minutes as read, seconded by Ellen Mikeworth and the motion passed.

NEW BUSINESS/VISITORS

President Heideman recognized Treasurer Krystal Alberts who gave the treasurer’s report for July 2022. Ed Tholen moved to approve the report as read, seconded by Shannon Meier and the motion passed. April Lyons moved to present the bills to the Finance Committee, seconded by Ellen Mikeworth and the motion passed. Finance Chairman Ed Tholen reported expenditures of $12,400.89 in the General Fund; expenditures of $21,297.04 in the Water Works Fund; and expenditures of $109.12 in the MFT Fund. Total expenditures in all funds were $33,807.05. Ed Tholen moved to pay all July bills in the usual manner, seconded by Shannon Meier and the motion passed.

President Heideman brought the following before the board for discussion and/or action:

Ø Lee Potts reported the metal culvert going through his driveway is blocked. The only way it can be unblocked is to replace the culvert. It’s too late in the year to get the work done and after discussion, Ed Tholen moved to table action on the culvert until spring, seconded by Angie Gray and the motion passed.

Ø Trick or Treat hours were discussed. Ed Tholen moved to set the Trick or Treat hours from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. on Halloween night, seconded by April Lyons and the motion passed. These are the hours set several years ago, and they seem to work the best.

Ø The delinquent water bill on the Meents estate was discussed. The estate should be paying the water bill, but no one is paying it, and the amount due is over $400. The daughter and her attorney would like to have the water service terminated; but at this time, the water service cannot be terminated because the house behind the residence is attached to their water line. They have two separate meters but the same line. If the service is terminated on the Meents property, the service would be terminated on the house behind them also. To correct the problem, Haley Brothers needs to come in and unhook the water line and install a shut off valve on it. President Heideman will contact Haley’s to install the shut off valve on the property behind the Meents property.

Ø The Coliseum committee would like to replace the sidewalk in front of the coliseum because it’s sloping toward the coliseum and water is running down in the crawl space causing the foundation to crumble. They want to install a sump pump in the crawl space, but they don’t know where the water will go. They asked if the water could be pumped into the street. They would also like to put pavers in between the sidewalk and the street. The board would like to see a drawing of their proposal before their request is approved.

Ø Upon questioning, President Heideman reported Well #3 is fixed. Mike Thompson was called and showed up the next morning. He had to order a part and everything is working. President Heideman will ask Russ Schoon for sure whether the well is definitely fixed.

OLD BUSINESS

President Heideman reported on the following:

Ø President Heideman asked what the board wanted to do as a memorial for deceased Maintenance Supervisor Jeff Hanson. Discussion followed and April Lyons moved to donate $200 to the Ashkum Fire Department in memory of Jeff, seconded by Shannon Meier and the motion passed. Treasurer Krystal Alberts asked about his pay and what was still due to his estate. His pension is the only outstanding payment due. Clerk Schmitz will get the paperwork ready as soon as the treasurer gives her a report of all the payroll information for this fiscal year.

Ø A certified letter was received from IEPA about the permit the engineers failed to do, but President Heideman believed the matter had already been taken care of. He will talk to Mr. Hamilton for verification.

COMMITTEE REPORTS

Trustee April Lyons reported she received an invoice from Christmas Décor and forwarded it to Treasurer Krystal Alberts for payment.

Trustee Ellen Mikeworth reported she drove past the park late one afternoon and noticed an older man with Indiana license plates playing basketball by himself. There was a young girl alone in the park and Ellen thought it looked suspicious - an out of state older man playing basketball by himself in our park. She was concerned and drove back and told the young girl it was time to go home. Ellen reported she talked to her employer (State Police) and they suggested the village install a camera in the park. Ellen asked if the people doing surveillance in the village could check in with the board so we could be aware of strange cars parking or driving around. Trustee Mikeworth also asked if we can do something with the display case Jeff Hanson got for the village. After a short discussion, it was decided we could find village memorabilia and something that belonged to Jeff to put in the case.

Trustee Angie Gray had no report.

Trustee Shannon Meier had no report.

Trustee Ed Tholen had no report.

Clerk Donna Schmitz reported the dogs in her neighborhood are still barking nonstop.

Treasurer Krystal Alberts had no report.

As there was no further business to come before the board, Shannon Meier moved to adjourn the meeting at 8:15 p.m., seconded by Angie Gray and the motion passed.

http://www.ashkum.net/pages/subpages/minutes.htm